


Born To Run

by ReaganJenelle



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Death, Eventual Romance, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn, Titans
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-03
Updated: 2018-01-03
Packaged: 2019-02-19 08:46:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13120248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReaganJenelle/pseuds/ReaganJenelle
Summary: Elise, Ellie, Thompson never gave much thought to what happened outside of the walls or the threat of Titans. There hadn't been an attack in a hundred years, and that was enough for a twelve-year-old with a love for dancing. She was happy living in Shiganshina with her parents.When everything was taken from her in one fell swoop, Ellie struggles to live in a world where she's alone.so she does the only thing she can do.After joining the 104th Cadet Traing Corps, Ellie tries to survive the harsh training to make it to the front lines.





	Born To Run

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! So, I aged everyone by three years because I find it easier to work with older teens.  
> Erin-15  
> Mikasa-15  
> Armin-15  
> Ellie-15  
> Reiner-17  
> Bertolt-16  
> Annie-16  
> Jean-15  
> Marco-16  
> Connie-15  
> Sasha-15  
> Krista/Historia-14  
> Ymir-16  
> This is the age everyone is when Trost was attacked. It is now the age that they are when they start training. I repeat, THIS IS HOW OLD THE CHARACTERS ARE AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS STORY. Now that that's taken care of, onto the story!

I loved dancing. They way bodies moved in harmony always roused something in me. This, no doubt, was because of my mother. In a world where people start working at twelve, no one gave the art much thought. But I did. My father would set me on his toes and twirled me around our small kitchen. It was in the moments he would draw my mom close and their bodies worked together to create something so beautiful that I knew it was something I would always love. Dreams of one day being led by a handsome man in a waltz kept me from spending my time playing with the other children. Most of the boys thought it was stupid, and the only other girl I knew took no interest. Not every boy was as dull. Doctor Yeager's son, Eren, was nice enough, and Armin Arlert was fun to talk to. Neither of them much cared for dancing. Mikasa Ackerman, the only girl I knew who was around my age, seemed too distant to talk to. I didn't really mind. After all, I had everything I needed in my mom and dad. 

This was what was going through my mind as I stood at attention with the rest of the Cadets. Commandant Shadis towered over us, glaring harshly. I forced myself to focus on him and silently scolded myself. Those thought I had been lost in were useless here. 

"Straighten those spines, piss ants! The 104th Training Cadet Corps starts now!" The man bellowed.

I stood taller, shifting my feet closer together. If I stood any straighter it felt like my spine would snap. I could see others around me correct the posture, nervousness creating lines in our young faces. 

"Allow me to introduce myself; I'm Commadant Keith Shadis, and you will grow to hate me! Your time here will be a white knuckle ride though hell. If I've done my job right you'll be waking up in a cold sweat from nightmares of this place for the rest of your miserable lives!"

Fear and excitement raced up my aching spine at his threatening words. I was here. I was finally old enough to join. The day I turned fifteen, I marched into the recruitment office and put my name on the list of people eager to join. Today was the beginning of the rest of my life.

"Right now you're nothing, livestock! At the end of the next three soul crushing years, you'll learn how to take down your own Goliath. Remember this moment when you come face to face with him, 'cause here's where you ask yourself, 'Am I a fighter? Or am I feed? Am I gonna be ground down to fodder between boulder sized incisors? Or am _I_ gonna bite?'."

I found myself lifting my chin just a bit higher. I would fight with everything I had, claw tooth and nail, and do everything in my power to make it to the front lines. The titans took everything from me and they would pay for it with their lives. There was nothing that could stop me. My eyes followed the Commandant as he approached the first row of cadets. He would stop in front of different trainees, demand their name and origin before slinging insults at them carelessly.

"Hey, mop top!" Commandant yelled when he made it to the third row.

A familiar voice called back, "Sir!"

So Armin was here, too. That must mean that Eren and Mikasa were around here somewhere. Those three were, or at least had been, inseparable. My heart clenched. I hadn't seen any of them since that day everything went to hell. No doubt Eren was hell bent on getting revenge on the titans. 

"What do they call you, maggot?"

"Armin Arlert from Shiganshina, sir!"

I could hear the anxiety in his voice. Armin had always been timid.

"Wow, seriously? Why would your parents curse you with such a dumb name?" Commandant Shadis demanded heartlessly. 

"I-it was my grandfather, sir!"

"Cadet Arlert, why is a runt like you here?"

"To help humanity overcome the titans!" Armin yelled in a slightly shaky voice.

"That is delightful to hear! You're gonna be a great light snack for 'em. Row three, aboutface, runt!" 

The row turned in clumsy unison. I could barely make out Armin's blond hair from where I stood. It brought a strange sort of comfort that he, at least, was here. Maybe I wasn't as alone in this as I thought. 

"-I'm from the Trost district."

"I can't hear you!"

The cadet raised his voice. "I'm from Trost, Sir!"

"Great, nobody here gives a damn!"

Just two more rows until the Commandant reached me. 

"Row four, aboutface!"

One more row.

"What do we have over here?" Commandant Shadis demanded of the boy in front of me.

The boy gave a confidant salute. "Jean Kirstein, sir!"

"And why are you here, Cadet?"

"To join the Military Police, sir. The best of the best!"

The Commandant's face took on a cruel twist. "That's nice. You wanna live on the interior, do you?"

"Yes- ugh!"

Before Kirstein could finish, he was sent to his knees by a painful headbutt. I winced sympathetically as Kierstein clenched at his head. The crack that came from their skulls connecting had been a loud, sickening noise. 

"No one told you to sit, recruit!" Shadis yelled from where he towered over the body on the ground. "If you can't handle this, Kierstein, then forget about joining the Military Police!"

Kierstein staggered to his feet as Shadis moved on.

"What the hell is wrong with your face, you smiling idiot?"

"Marco Bott at your service sir!"

The rest of what Bott was saying was lost to me when I noticed the girl next to me pull out a steaming potato and begin to silently eat it. The sight was so bizarre that I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing. What could have possessed her to eat it  _here_ of all places. Had she waited an hour, no one would have been any the wiser. I found myself hoping to Commandant wouldn't notice. He continued to lite into Marco and Potato girl continued to eat, getting small bits of food on her cheeks. 

"Hey, cue ball, you're up next."

My attentions shifted back to the Commandant and who he was degrading now. I watched in slight terror as the boy, Connie Springer, was lifted by his head for doing the salute incorrectly. My eyes grew wide in shock. 

"-Is your heart on your _right side_?!"

A loud crunch echoed through the formation. I had to restrain myself from looking at potato girl. She continued to eat happily, unaware of the attention she had just drawn to herself. Shadis narrowed his eyes at the girl, his whole attention focused, before releasing Springer who fell in a heap in the dirt. 

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" The Commandants voice was deadly and low. This somehow managed to be more chilling that his yells.

The girls continued to eat, glancing around as though she couldn't figure out who had stolen the Commandants attention. Said man steadily drew closer. I felt myself growing nervous for the foolish cadet.

"YOU'RE OFFICIALLY ON MY SHIT LIST! JUST WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?" Shadis bellowed, spit spraying.

Potato grasped firmly in her right hand, She replied easily. "Sasha Blouse from Dopper village reporting for duty, sir!"

"Sasha Blouse, huh?" It was staggering to see the difference in size between Blouse and Shadis. "And what is that you're clutching in your right hand?"

"A Steamed potato! It sat there in the Mess Hall begging to be eaten, sir!"

Commandant Shadis seemed truly baffled by Blouse. "The theft, I understand. But here... Why eat it here of all places?"

"It looked quite delicious and it was getting cold, so I gave it shelter in my stomach, sir."

"Why? I can't comprehend... Why would you eat that potato?"

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Blouse draw her eyebrows together in slight confusion. "Are you asking me why people eat potatoes? I'm surprised you don't know, sir."

Several cadets shot dumbfounded looks at the girl to my right as if to say,  _'Do you have a death wish?'_. Not a sound was made as all eyes watched what would happen next. Even Springer looked like he couldn't believe what he was seeing. I held my breath as Blouse looked down at the steamed potato in her hand before tearing it into two pieces. After a moment, she held up one half as an offering.

"Here, sir, have half." Blouse said with a smile.

Commandant Shadis looked taken back by the offer. For the past two years, food has been coveted. Giving it away could mean going hungry. Especially for the Wall Maria refugees. Hunger had become a close friend these past two years. 

"Have half... really?" The Commandant muttered almost to himself. 

 For a moment I thought that would be the end of it. The Commandant would simply accept the food and move on. Everyone waited with baited breath.

Then-

"KNOCK THAT SMILE OFF YOUR FACE, MAGGOT!" 

I startled at the sudden yell. Shadis threw the food to the ground before knocking the rest out of Blouse's hand. A look of dismay crossed her face at the ruined potato.

"You have officially earned yourself no meals for the rest of today!  Now run until the sun sets!"

Blouse widened her eyes, seemingly more disheartened by the fact that she wouldn't get lunch and dinner than the nine hour run ahead of her. She broke off from the group and began her first lap of many around the large clearing. I squashed down the pitty I felt for her when Shadis turned his rage on the next person in line; me.

"You, redhead!"

My fist slammed against my chest in a clean salute. "Elisa Thompson from Shiganshina, sir!"

"Why are you here, Thompson?" Shadis demanded.

"To take back what the titans stole from us, sir!" I hoped he couldn't hear the slight quiver in my voice. 

"That is what I like to hear! The titans will appreciate the meal you'll make! Aboutface, row five!"

My heart continued to beat wildly in my chest as I spun on my heel. The weight of anticipation was lifted, but the sting of his harsh words remained. I watched as Commandant Shadis continued down the rows. Blouse came into my line of sight as she finished her first lap. The sun rose higher and higher into the sky as Cadets were singled out and berated. Sweat collected in my hairline before starting a trail down the back of my neck. It wasn't until Blouse had make her fourth lap that we were dismissed with instructions to report to the Mess Hall for lunch.

My aching shoulders immediately fell back into their normal relaxed state as I followed the crowd. Cadets who knew one another clusstered together in small herds. My eyes scanned the group's for Armin. It took longer than I anticipated to spot his light blond hair.

"Armin!" I waved my hand over my head to try and gain his attention. When he continued forward without looking behind him, I pushed past the people that separated us. 

"Armin!" I placed my hand on his shoulder.

He looked over at me with wide eyes. Recognition sparked in his face. "Ellie?"

I grinned. "Hey. Long time, no see. Are Eren and Mikasa here with you?"

He smiled at me. The last time I had seen Armin was on the day Shiganshina fell. Back then I had been almost a head taller than him. He would have been a poor dance partner. Now he had at least an inch on me. 

"Yeah, there they are."

I looked over to see said pair navigating the herd to join us at the mouth of the Mess Hall. Both of them had quite a bit of height on me, but their faces still had the same youthful feel as when we were kids. 

"Ellie?" Eren said, blinking down at me. "What are you doing here? I though you wanted to become a dancer."

My throat tightened slightly at the reminder of a shatter childhood dream. "I guess I changed my mind. Can't say I'm surprised to see you here. Still wanna be in the Scouts?"

A muscle in his jaw twitched. "I will be."


End file.
